It’s official. Rage Against the Machine will be headlining this year’s Coachella Festival in Indio, Calif.

What had been rumored for a while was confirmed this morning. They join a lineup that includes Bjork, the Decemberists, the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Interpol, Sonic Youth, the Jesus and Mary Chain, Artic Monkeys, and Willie Nelson (of all people).

If you’d been on the fence about a trip southward for the Coachella Music and Arts Festival, surely seeing Rage Against the Machine on stage again will be enough to put you over the top.

Tickets go on sale this Saturday, Jan. 27. â€" Matt Driscoll

No doubt many will be excited to hear that Gwen Stefani will perform at June 16 at the White River Amphitheatre in Auburn.  Live Nation announced the concert today stating Akon and Lady Sovereign will open.

Tickets for "The Sweet Escape" tour as they call it will go on sale Saturday, Feb. 10, at all Ticketmaster outlets. â€" Brad Allen

After a brief holiday hiatus, the 100th Monkey mania is back tonight, and this time it's swanky! Tonight's party takes place in the newly renovated lobby of the fabulous Pantages Theater. As impressive as the location and the usual assemblage of attendees are, Sue Pivetta, organizer of these bimonthly events, wants everyone to know that this is not an elite group or clique. In fact, socializing with new people is the entire point. 

If you're new to the whole monkey thing, you should know that these parties are breeding grounds for new artistic collaborations, fabulous friendships and wonderful new ideas.

Another delightful aspect of the 100th Monkey parties is the random drawing that determines who will be the honoree at the next gathering. The purchase of a $4 original work of art qualifies purchasers for the drawing to be the next 100th Monkey. This month the tiles have been created by Kulture Lab artists James Hume and Jeff Olson.  At the last party, a newcomer purchased one of the monkey tiles â€" publisher of City Arts magazine Mike Hathaway.

The Weekly Volcano caught up with Hathaway before tonight's festivities.

WEEKLY VOLCANO: Where are you from?
MIKE HATHAWAY: I was born in Seattle. I live in Edmonds.

VOLCANO: Where did you go to school?
HATHAWAY: Washington State University.

VOLCANO: What did you do before you became a magazine mogul?
HATHAWAY: I have sold advertising since graduating from college in 1978. Spent many years in radio, in Tacoma and then Seattle.

VOLCANO: What made you decide to start a magazine?
HATHAWAY: The company I work for, Encore Media Group, has grown over the years and now published theater programs for 20 arts organizations throughout the Puget Sound area, as well as 6 arts organizations in the San Francisco Bay Area. We have provided programs to Tacoma arts organizations over the past 15 years. With the revitalization of downtown Tacoma, we thought it an excellent opportunity to launch City Arts magazine to talk specifically about the many interesting and diverse facets of the cultural personality of Tacoma and the broader South Sound region.

VOLCANO: What do you like best about Tacoma?
HATHAWAY: The pride of its residents in their community.

VOLCANO: Do you have any hobbies?
HATHAWAY: Like many families in the Northwest, we try to enjoy the outdoors. We camp and hike in the summer, and ski in the winter. We just tried snowshoeing for the first time near Leavenworth.

VOLCANO: Did you pull any strings to have it at the Pantages since you publish the Broadway Center's program book?
HATHAWAY: I didn't need to do much more than contact David Fischer at Broadway Center for the Performing Arts. He had also attended the last 100th Monkey so he knew that it was a great opportunity to support the group while also showing off the newly renovated Pantages.

VOLCANO: Do you like monkeys?
HATHAWAY: I can honestly say that I have not met one I didn't like! â€" Angela Jossy

Bob's “World Famous” Java Jive, the concrete teapot that has graced South Tacoma Way for more than 75 years, is being invaded right now by a multi-department assessment by the City of Tacoma.  Tacoma Power, Tacoma Fire Department and city code enforcement inspectors will be combing it for violations over the next hour before releasing a statement according to Deputy Fire Marshall Phil Ferell. 

After surviving a fire, demolition threats, many Girl Trouble live shows, countless pounders of PBR, and official historical status through the City of Tacoma, could this be the end of our world famous eclectic tavern? â€" Ken Swarner

Rob McNair-Huff, Tacoma Community Relations Supervisor, confirmed that the city shut down the Java Jive, a Tacoma landmark, today.
McNair-Huff said the Jive was served an "emergency plan of repairs." 
The owners have one week to get an electrical contractor to repair the city code violations or the city will turn off its power. â€" Ken Swarner

You hear about “Critical Mass” a lot at 100th Monkey parties in Tacoma.  There’s the story about critical mass, monkeys teaching one hundred monkeys to peel yams, pretty soon all the monkeys are doing it. Mike Hathaway, host of the party and publisher of City Arts, explained the concept to the crowd last night, and explained how he came by the “lucky” 100th tile at the last event, hosted at the Sanford & Son shops last year: “I saw people lining up to buy a tile.  I thought that’d be fun!”

By all appearances last night, it appears that that same critical mass model is happening with the 100th Monkey parties.  A huge crush of people, some who were dressed like Frieda Kahlo and Diego Rivera, brought old friends and met new ones as the evening progressed, engulfing both the art and the artists present.  Which was a shame for guitarist Travis Hartnett, whose music was overpowered by the roar of hundreds of individual conversations.

Not that the conversations themselves weren’t great, at least what I was hearing.  There were people promoting, sipping wine, reuniting, and even one thrash-metal pioneer recognized by the mother of a teen whose son had just learned about the history of thrash metal.

While it does a heart good to see a huge, diverse community of people getting together to intermingle, with the express goal of meeting three new people, the size of the crowd made more than a few wonder: how long can this keep growing?

The next event, in March, will be hosted by lucky tile recipient Laura Eklund, and it’s rumored that the event will happen at the Varsity Grill. â€" Jessica Corey-Butler

Do you have some spare-time?

Want to earn extra money?

Volunteers needed for part-time face-melting metal concert. Must be 21 or over and in good health. Concert payments range from between $1 to $100 in an envelope at the door. Willing to travel to South Tacoma Way? The Show Media, a concert promoter and booking agency, needs volunteers aged 21 plus for a Black Alley and Shattered concert Saturday night at The 54. You must be a resident of the of the United States and like metal.

Interested?  Please click here. â€" Brad Allen

Taylor Swift, 17, neither plays for cuteness nor exits out of caddies without panties; she simply uses her brain to express clearly her future goals, her worldly outlook and her realization that boys suck.

She opens for George Strait Saturday at the Tacoma Dome, but first stops by McCabes American Music Café to prefunc with The Wolf crew around 4 p.m. Check her out up close for free. â€" Suzy Stump

While the Tacoma News Tribune has been quick to take credit for breaking the story of Bob's Java Jive's recent closure, due to a slew of electrical, safety, and building code violations found by the Tacoma Fire Department during an impromptu inspection on Wednesday, the truth of the matter is the Volcano's Ken and Ron Swarner first reported the action Wednesday morning on this little Spew.  The Fire Department's inspection was sparked by a report of overcrowding at the Jive, received by the city earlier this year. What the Tribune is calling a "fire official" was sent to the Jive, and noted problems visible from the outside.  It was all down hill after that, and as has been much reported, Wednesday the city swarmed, and the Jive closed.

As I type a brigade of concerned patrons, musicians, roller girls, electricians, and beer lovers are working overtime in attempts to have the big coffee pot back in action.  Originally they hoped to have the Jive up and running in time for this weekend, and the Dockyard Derby Dames benefit scheduled for Saturday featuring the debut of Chris Trashcan's new outfit â€" The Gold Teeth, but news just broke on the Dames' MySpace page that the work will not be finished in time.

As could be expected, many within Tacoma's scene are taking the news hard, but many are also rolling up their sleeves and organizing the repairs.  Bon Von Wheelie, Girl Trouble's drummer, and Chris Trashcan have been involved.  They're also brimming with memories.

"We've got a ton of memories," says Von Wheelie, a quasi-Tacoma music historian.  "Bill Kahuna (GT's guitarist) and Kurt (GT's frontman) first met at the Jive. They were punk rock teenagers.

"And the real live chimps by the pool tables.  Not many people can actually say they were in the joint when the had live apes!"

"When I first walked in the place, I immediately realized that no other place like that existed on earth," offers Trashcan.

"I've always associated the Java Jive as an icon for my city."

Along with the repairs, the Jive is also looking for some pro bono legal help, to fight the city's threats of closure. At this time there's been no word on whether they've found it.

Will the many concerned friends and family of the Jive be able to save the landmark? Does the city care about landmarks?

It all waits to be seen.  Tacoma crosses its fingers. â€" Matt Driscoll

Ah, the power of a pub.

History lesson: the pub, or “public house” was a place created so the common man could go have a pint.  The landed gentry had their “gentlemen’s clubs,” and in fact, their castles, but the pub was a place where any Joe could go and bemoan the fact that his last pence were just spent on a couple of dogs who’d just run away.

So was my state of mind as I wandered into opening night for the downtown Tacoma Paddy Coyne's Irish Pub, desperately sad that my gate was left open to allow my puppies out; desperately sad my puppies hadn’t returned. 

The place, smelling freshly of varnish and upholstery, had the low-light, high-backed-booth appeal of a lover’s secret.  Wood was two tones of dark, a fire flickered enticingly, and art was tastefully Irish, with some of the best Guinness ads ever, in the ladies room.  Even the bartender’s brogue made Paddy himself sound like a Yank. It was authentically lovely.

The menu, boasting such marvels as Pulled Pork sandwiches, Guinness Braised Irish Stew, and Shepherd’s Pie (no kidney pie, thankfully) was running “limited”; my own wedge salad might have been better had I not ordered dressing on the side (eventually, I will learn) but the massive Turkey Club Sandwich my girlfriend ordered was enough to feed three of us â€" and was tasty, to boot â€" while the significant one had chicken wings that looked ever so slightly paltry on the plate but smelled like Heaven and served to satisfy him.

I can’t wait to go back and try some of the heavy-on-the-whiskey desserts, can’t wait to dig into the Irish soda bread, and the pub chicken salad description had my salivary glands working overtime: rotisserie chicken, celery, green onions, tarragon mayo, and greens with roasted asparagus, red onions, tomatoes, and eggs.

And yet, the piece de resistance of any pub: beer.

I forewent my standard “red wine” order to enjoy a pint of Harp, because when in Ireland, do as the Irish. The cold, tingly elixir, a full 20 oz Imperial Pint, hit me in exactly the right way.  Evoking memories of afternoons spent in the Pub, poring over letters home when I lived in England, the beer soothed my troubles and worked like a Calgon bath for my psyche. 

Good friends helped, and pretty soon, I found myself among five favorite people and working on my third pint.

Because even beer can get ugly, the next day, the third pint was a half â€" and happy me, Paddy Coyne's DOES serve half pints, and lager shandies. (To the uninitiated: the shandy is a beer, ale or lager mixed with “lemonade” in the UK â€" lemon/lime soda, in the US â€" it’s sort of the British pub-girl’s version of the white wine spritzer, and I drank quite a few of them when I lived over the pond.)

I walked out the door transformed, lighter in mind.  I still went home to an echoingly devoid-of-dogs house, but for a moment that evening, I was in a different place, where people spoke in a lovely, lilting melody, where the music soothed the soul, and where the pints were good. â€" Jessica Corey-Butler

[Paddy Coyne's Irish Pub, Ninth and Pacific, downtown Tacoma]